


Two Become One

by Aichi



Series: Two Hearts [1]
Category: Cardfight!! Vanguard
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Sharing a Body
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2018-12-31
Packaged: 2019-09-25 06:51:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,842
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17116490
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aichi/pseuds/Aichi
Summary: Kazumi and Shiranui agree to try another diffride, but overcoming the past is harder for some than for others.





	Two Become One

**Author's Note:**

  * For [UselessLilium (o0whitelily0o)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/o0whitelily0o/gifts).



> CFV 2018 Secret Santa gift for Lily!! It's very pointless fluff honestly, but I hope you like it! I definitely had fun working on it and am very excited to offer something to EN fandom's most powerful creator of Shirazumi content~

“Just so you know,” Kazuma says, eyes narrowing, “I’m only trusting you because _he_ does.”

“I’m aware,” Shiranui replies solemnly, and _fuck_ , Kazuma doesn’t know how he’s going to do this after all, doesn’t know how he’s going to manage dealing with Shiranui wearing his brother’s face and voice again when it’s _already_ making him grit his teeth. “I wouldn’t expect otherwise. I’ve done plenty to deserve your suspicions.”

It takes everything Kazuma has to not scream at him right there, not just about Kazumi but about Luard, Gyze, the Apostles, _everything_ , because _all of it_ had started with him and what _right_ does he think he has to diffride again, even if Kazumi agreed to it?

Taking a deep breath, Kazuma balls his fists under the table. “ _He_ trusts you,” he repeats, more as a reminder to himself than anything. Starting anything messy in a crowded cafe would be a bad idea anyway.

“I do,” Kazumi’s voice says quietly, and Kazuma’s eyes widen in surprise, because it really _is_ him this time. He can just _tell_ , somehow. It’s the same voice, but the energy it exudes is different, softer, the words suddenly so much more comforting and familiar – and when he musters the strength to look his brother in the eye, _that_ feels familiar too. “Things are different now. He’s not controlling me anymore.”

There’s a pause, and he gives a quiet “ _hmm_ ”, like he’s agreeing with himself. It takes Kazuma a second to understand.

“What, so you’re... like, _sharing_?”

“You could call it that, yes.” The tone is different again, the words caked in a creeping sense of _otherness_. It makes Kazuma shiver a little, but at least, he reasons, he seems to be able to tell them apart. “Your brother will retain control at all times unless he chooses to cede it. You can think of me more as a passenger, if that helps.”

It does, a little, but Kazuma is hesitant to admit it. “How do I know you’re not going to try anything after I start trusting you?”

“You don’t, I suppose,” Shiranui admits, “I’ve done very little to earn that trust. It’s presumptuous of me to do so, but I can only ask that you give me the opportunity to prove myself.” There’s a pause, and then he adds, in a voice that is somehow both his and Kazumi’s, their two presences overlapping into a single word, “Please.”

Kazuma exhales in a long, drawn-out sigh. “This is for him,” he says, finally, “not for you.”

Shiranui nods, silent but accepting, and only a second later the same face breaks into a thankful smile that is undeniably, authentically Kazumi. Kazuma can’t help but feel a weight lift from his shoulders, just a little; those eyes are still _his_ , even despite the other presence hiding behind them, and as weird and uncomfortable as the whole thing is, maybe this _is_ alright, in the end. If it’s what he really, genuinely, wholeheartedly wants, then Kazumi being allowed to chase his own happiness for once is infinitely more valuable than his little brother holding a grudge.

“Just remember,” Kazuma adds some time later, as the two – _three –_ of them get up to leave, “I’m keeping an eye on you.”

“I expect nothing less,” Shiranui replies, even as Kazumi breaks into a grin again, their contrast bizarre and yet somehow appropriate. “I will do my very best to earn your forgiveness.”

“You’d better.”

 

 

The inside of Kazumi’s mind is vastly different to the last time Shiranui was there, and the distinction is both comforting and alarming.

The image of a large, old, traditional house and garden that he finds himself in when Kazumi takes primary control of his – _their_? – body is startlingly reminiscent of the Onimaru family home, but something about it is serene, secure, like it was captured from a particular moment in time and carefully constructed to wall out anything else. An eternal sunset warms the air and bathes the gardens and open sliding doors in a deep orange glow, the area comfortably quiet save for a trickle of water and the occasional sharp, echoing tap of bamboo against rock.

Shiranui can’t help but think of the cramped, dank dungeon from their last diffride. He hadn’t even crafted that space himself – just taken advantage of an image that Kazumi already carried within him. It had been truly horrific, the air thick with resentment and apathy, but seeing what it was able to become given only a few short years fills him with both relief and admiration.

He sits quietly in the grass for a time, legs crossed and eyes closed, simply allowing the feeling of the place to wash over him.

“Do you like it?”

Opening his eyes, Shiranui turns to see his partner sitting on the edge of the raised deck skirting the house. A quick sweep of their body’s senses confirms that Kazumi arrived safely back at his modest apartment in the real world some time ago, and Shiranui privately chides himself for not paying attention.

“It’s beautiful,” he says, honestly.

Kazumi pats the deck next to him. “This is where I introduced Kazuma to Vanguard. We used to play here a lot.” He pauses, closes his eyes for a second, like he’s holding something back. “It was fun, when we actually got the chance for it.”

As he trails off again, Shiranui stands, crossing the short distance to the house before settling on the ground once more. With the added height of the deck, Kazumi is almost as tall as he is, even sitting down, and promptly takes the opportunity to stretch out and caress the side of the dragon’s neck, smiling with that incredible warmth and overwhelming, undeserved forgiveness that Shiranui has come to know from him.

The two of them stay there for a while, just _being_ with each other, until, unable to hold himself back any longer, Shiranui breaks the peaceful silence.

“Perhaps it would be better if I were to leave after all.”

The words tear at his heart even as he says them.

“Wh-what?” A thousand emotions race across Kazumi’s face at once, every one of them adding to the weight in Shiranui’s stomach. “Why?! You just got here!” His voice pitches up sharply, eyes wide and frantic, mouth half-open as he searches for something to say.

“I know.” Shiranui looks away, dipping his head apologetically. “But my presence is... troublesome, even now. Your brother is right not to trust me. I have no wish to harm either of you by putting undue strain on your relationship.”

Despite being unable to meet his partner’s gaze, Shiranui can’t avoid the wave of fear and confusion that washes through the garden, emotions swirling in the air around him and sticking to his scales like parasites. All at once, everything feels like a mistake. His confidence in front of Kazuma, fueled by Kazumi’s forward eagerness and his own private, almost taboo enthusiasm – it seems like such a foolish idea. Kazumi built this beautiful garden of his alone, or at least without Shiranui’s help. Surely his presence could do nothing but poison it again.

There’s a long silence.

“I _love_ you,” Kazumi finally chokes out.

“A... and I you,” Shiranui replies slowly, willing the pain not to show in his voice, “which is why I–”

“N–... no, I–” Kazumi sighs, the air around them prickling as he speaks. “Listen to me. Please.” He takes another shuddering breath. “I invited you here because _I want you here_. Why do you think I built all this?” A sweep of his arm gestures around the garden. “And Kazuma _agreed_. He _does_ trust you, even if he’s wary. And besides, he’s not the only person with feelings that are important to me.” Shoes crunching into the gravel walkway as he drops down from the deck, he takes Shiranui’s wrist in his hand, fragile human fingers unable to completely encircle it. “You’re allowed to be here, alright? This place is for both of us.”

The fingers clench tighter around him, and he’s struck by an image of the same hands, in the same garden, but smaller, younger, and grasping a deck of cards bearing familiar images.

_We used to play here a lot._

_This place is for both of us_.

“Please,” Kazumi says, and his eyes are alight with something Shiranui has never seen before, but wishes he had, because it’s beautiful, “You can leave if you truly want to, of course, but, just... don’t ever think that you’re not welcome here.”

When Kazumi looks at him like that, for a moment, the only thing that feels like a mistake is the idea of leaving.

Wordlessly, Shiranui stands, gently pulling himself free of Kazumi’s hold. His partner makes a soft, disappointed noise at the loss of contact – a noise which quickly becomes a yelp of surprise as the dragon hooks one arm under his legs, catches him with the other as he topples back, and sweeps his body into a bridal carry in one smooth motion.

“I will work my hardest to atone, then, so that I might one day be truly worthy of this place.” Shiranui keeps his voice even, holds Kazumi’s worryingly tense body to his chest in a gesture that he hopes speaks for him. The idea still feels brazen, selfish, inappropriate to even wish for – that he could really be deserving of a place like this, that he could ever hope to exist here without simply causing more conflict and pain in the life of the person he was supposed to be one with. And yet, it’s hard to deny himself the ability to _wish_ for it when Kazumi’s body is already starting to practically melt against him, tension dissipating from the air as he begins to relax, limp and heavy, into Shiranui’s arms.

Instead of arguing with himself anymore, he dips his head and nuzzles his snout into Kazumi’s hair.

“Does– does this mean you’re staying?” Kazumi asks, breathlessly.

“For now, yes.” A sharp pang of guilt pokes at Shiranui’s heart, and he brushes it away. “It would be exceptionally rude of me to turn down such accommodations, after all.”

With a laugh, Kazumi tilts his head back, stretches up as best he can, and leaves a small, teasing peck at the end of the dragon’s muzzle. The tiny touch is more than enough to send shockwaves down Shiranui’s spine, and he has to stop himself from squeezing the frail human body dangerously tightly against his chest, because more than anything that touch makes him want to be _close_ , even if he shouldn’t, and he’s suddenly aware of how much it feels like his heart is going to _burst_.

As gently as he can, he bumps his snout against Kazumi’s lips in return, in a gesture that he can only hope seems as heartfelt as it feels.

“I love you,” Kazumi says again, and this time the words wrap around Shiranui like a soft, reassuring blanket, a blessing instead of a curse.

“And I you.”

**Author's Note:**

> As usual, please visit twitter user @cosmowreath for all your Niche Vanguard Shipping needs. Merry Christmas.


End file.
